No figs from my fig tree this year (forum)

Linda starts with ...
We bought our home three years ago and it came with a mature fig tree. Each summer we've had a yield of almost 200 figs from it but this year...nothing! It has produced it's usual beautiful green leafy canopy but only about three figs have formed! What has gone wrong? Is there anything I can do?

Time: 21st October 2010 9:04pm

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About the Author Linda12
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Jason says...
Did you get a chance to ask the pervious owner how they were looking after the tree?. This often happens with a change of owners, chances are the previous owner was adding something to the soil that you are not and the tree just ran out of food

Time: 21st October 2010 9:14pm

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About the Author Jason
Portland
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Linda says...
Not possible I'm afraid, she has passed on since then. However it's unlikely she was doing much in the last few years that she lived here because she got very frail towards the end and the garden was very very neglected - for example we had to cut out a jasmine bush that was 20 cm at its base and occupied a 3 metre radius. Also, the fig tree pokes up from a huge expanse of paving. We estimate that it must be 30 years old at least, maybe older (we also inherited a huge orange tree we think is about 40 years old, 5 metres tall, but that's another story).

Is there something we can do now or is it too late? Can I tear up some paving and find a way to feed it if that's what it needs? Forgive my ignorance, I'm very new to the whole gardening game, but I absolutely love my garden and I was so proud of that tree. Each year we've had this amazing bounty of figs - we eat lots, give lots away and share the rest with the local native birds. And this year, nothing, just like that!

Time: 21st October 2010 11:30pm

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About the Author Linda12
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Jason says...
Well Figs crop twice a year so right now you are only missing out on the breba crop that comes from the previous seasons growth.

As the tree grows now it will form one fruit for each leaf it grows so the more you can get it to grow the more fruit you will get. So the idea would be to just get a general fruit tree fertilizer and keep giving it a pot full sprinkled all around the tree out to past where the branches end once each couple of months until you start to see it picking up in growth and leaf size etc. To get a good breba crop you need the tree to be healthy the year before so if it's happy again going into the next Winter you should get more then following spring.

If the tree is totally enclosed by pavers? you will have to wash the fertilizer into the cracks in the pavers

Time: 22nd October 2010 11:38am

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About the Author Jason
Portland
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Linda says...
Will do. fingers crossed and thanks for the advice

Time: 23rd October 2010 3:24pm

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Itdepends says...
And don't forget they fruit at the base of new growth- so giving it a prune will help with next years crop.

Time: 24th October 2010 11:48pm

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Linda says...
An update: lots of baby figs forming right now at the base of the mass of new growth it put on over the last two months. Guess it just wanted to get bigger this year before it made figs. Or maybe its responding to all the Sydney rain and fertiliser? Either way I'm very happy!

Time: 15th November 2010 8:41am

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About the Author Linda12
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